#Fair,Food,Fun

Nothing signals those end-of-summer/intro-to-fall feelings for me quite like a trip to the LA county fair!
Every year the fair opens up some country realness to a bunch of city folk with petting zoos, rodeos, and let us not forget THE FOOD!

While fair food may not be the healthiest choice
-trust me, I felt like I need to do a seven day prayer fast after-
there are a few things I'd recommend if you're ready to get your grub on!

And if you know anything about me, it's that I do, in fact, like to get my grub on!

Having people there to share the foodie adventures totally heightens my experience and luckily I had my sister and our friend Monique of Curves and Chaos there to enjoy it with! :D

So my sister Pearmama was a big fan of these bad boys, know as the chipotle "dirty" chips from Tasti Chips. They were pretty good, even though I'm not a big fan of bleu cheese. They were loaded with diced tomatoes, green onions, sweet shredded beef and bleu cheese then topped with a chipotle sauce. 

The chips themselves were really crispy and fresh tasting.

Tasti Chips also offered jalapeño cheddar cheese chips which looked delicious!  

I'm DEF gonna have to give those a try on my next trip.  

Charlie's Chicken is an interesting plethora of fried sins. 

From a deep fried oreo, deep fried twinkie, deep fried frog legs and deep fried bacon-wrapped pickles (which were DE-FREAKING-LICIOUS by the way) . 

Didst I neglect to mention that they are also serving up a hamburger and sloppy joe between two Krispy-Kreme donuts????!!!!!!!! 

"Oh LAWD!"  shouted my arteries.

After all of that fried-ness, I was definitely happy to see a chicken and veggie kabob on the menu!!!

Ok, now onto my favorite things.....

*rubs hands together and chuckles villainously* 

The bloomin' onion is like a golden-crunchy-sweet-savory drop of godly nectar! 

Like for reals tho!

It comes with a really good dipping sauce that just totally made the 13 year old fat kid inside of me extremely happy!

Even tastier and scrumptious-er (?) was the BBQ braised brisket sundae. 

I know what you're thinking. "ewwwww that's just gone too far!!"

Halt all ye naysayers!!!!......

This beauty has two scoops of mashed potatoes in place of ice cream, and delicious toppings of braised beef brisket, bbq sauce and a cherry tomato to top it off!

Omg. I'm not much of a meat eater but this was yummmmmmmmmmm!

The fair has tons of food options to offer, such as pizza made from a TEN pound loaf of bread and in case you are suddenly worried out you calorie count, Skinnygirl Cocktails are there to take a little guilt out of the gluttony!

One thing that I was a little too nervous to actually eat was this lil' guy..... It reminded me of Sebastien from The Little Mermaid.. and it smelled super fishy. So I just snapped some Instagram pics, made a Vine then sent my little friend on his way....

 I think my sister pearmama and I agree...we weren't the biggest fans of the crawfish craze.

The L.A County fair is open now and runs until September 30, 2013. It's a perfect place for the family and a fun place to hang with friends! 

ttyl,
Jeshua

Get social with the L.A County Fair on Twitter and Facebook

água de melancia (sandia)

I may be a born and bred Californian and stem from a long line of tropical blood,

but LAWD HAVE MERCY!!! It is hot as satan's wrath up in in here!

In my effort to stay cool and hydrated...no actually I wasn't thinking about being hydrated at all.  I just wanted something good to drink

           lez be honest...

I looked around my kitchen and saw that I had a nice big watermelon which TOTES gave me a craving for something cool and refreshing. I pulled out my juicer that my mom and dad bought me and whipped up a favorite of mine, an água de melancia (watermelon water). 

Here's what you'll need;

• A blender or juicer ( if you're using a blender you may need to strain the juice at the end)
• 1Watermelon cut into large chunks
• 3 Limes peeled (or the juice of three limes)
• A handful of mint leaves
• Agave nectar to taste (optional)

soooo......basically just combine all of the ingredients in the blender or juicer, add the agave nectar and chill. Serve cold. Super simple and MAJORLY delicious! 

Some people make it more savory and add rock salt or chili powder, however I prefer mine a bit sweeter so depending on the watermelon I will add a bit of the agave nectar to taste.

     but that's pretty much it! 

Simple and refreshing, a perfect companion to all your summa-time shenanigans 

Hope you enjoy!!! ttyl
BoifromIpanema

Surf's up

Ever since I can remember, my fondest memories of the summer are engulfed by the ocean. Whether it was body surfing with my bros, beach bonfires with the family, summer whale watching trips with school-mates, ditching high school in my friend's jeep and heading out for a beach day- 

(I don't endorse that..but it was really fun)

 -camping with my entire extended family on the beaches of San Diego, San Clemente, even Ensenada Mexico, summer always revolved around time by the ocean.

My childhood and teen years were always filled by the sea. 

It wasn't until later in my life that I discovered surfing. Surfing is a rush that is so hard to explain. On one hand you have the immense power and enormity of the waves and the ocean, the slight but constant tinge of fear of the unknown and the peace and calm and quiet in between sets (of waves). It's in these contrasting moments that one can really appreciate and respect the beauty and power of God's creation. To simply sit on your board looking out into the vastness of the expanse of water before you is an overwhelming emotional experience in itself. Either that or I'm on my man period, in which case everything is hyper sensitive and emotional, yo!

I love taking time out of my schedule to go surfing with someone close to me.  Not just anyone but someone who can truly take in the full gravity of the experience and most importantly probably someone who will not annoy the life out of me. hahaha

But let's be real...I'm not gonna sit here and pretend that the entirety of my surf trips consist of me crying and staring into the horizon. In fact a majority of the time is spent laughing and joking around and eating and snacking and sometimes fighting but mostly laughing. Oh, and also falling. 

Lots of falling.  -__- 

But I don't mind because it keeps me humble. 

The ocean has a way of doing that.  

Just when you think you are big and bad,  there is always that one swell that totally wipes you out and makes you do cartwheels underwater straight into the sand. 

I once heard a quote that said "no matter how important you may think you are, you are never more important than the ocean".  It is so true and I believe it is something that more people need to realize. There are always things that will be bigger and better and more powerful than you. It's up to you do find the beauty in them and to use those things to make yourself better.  

Open yourself up to humbling experiences...you will be surprised by what you can learn.  

'Til later, friends.

ttyl beijos tchau, 

BoifromIpanema

Boards all secure and packed up ready to head down to the shore.


Always in good company, my white "Latin heart-ed" sista Lauren A.K.A Larry.

Larry with her long board.

Can't wait to hit the waves.



Our drink of choice 'cause we're cray cray like that...




I must say...I dig beach hair, even if it just frizzes up and gets in my face/mouth. haha

Note: all images are taken and owned by  Jeshua Viveiros and Boifromipanema.com

DIY Wave-Inspired Tie Dye Tank

While surfing last week, I was knocked off my board by a huge wave and while under water I opened my eyes in time to see the beautifully rad swirls of sand and color being stirred up by the force of the crashing water. I was inspired to create a cool tank that is as bold and flowing as the waves themselves as part of my Summa-time Shenanigans series. I can help you create your own Wave-Inspired Tie Dye Tank in five easy steps!  

What you'll need:

 

I used Tulip's One Step Dye from iLovetoCreate in black and teal. The dye comes included with rubber bands and with a pair of gloves which, trust me, you are going to need. Seriously... unless you like zombie-looking fingers, then by all means omit the gloves...I guess.

Do yourself a favor and choose a white t-shirt that is 100% cotton. Anything less will produce less than stellar results and  you want stellar results, right?  I grabbed a tee in a few sizes larger than I normally wear to give it that easy, bohemian look. Then I used an old tank I had as a template. Oh, be sure to cover your work surface with a plastic cover as the dye is...well, dye and dye may dye your surface.  

So yeh....

Step One:

Turn your white tee inside out so you don't see your tracing marks after you draw your template with the marker.

Cut with a pair of sharp scissors. Make sure your lines aren't jacked up.

Step Two:

Using your spray bottle generously spray your tank until the fabric is thoroughly soaked all the way trough. Then pinch the fabric in the middle of the tank and twist until the tank has spiraled into a small tight bundle thinggy, as shown in the pic below. Aren't I so very descriptive!?

Bravo private school education... bravo  -_-

For sharper lines and more crisp color separation, you can secure your bundle "thinggy" with the rubber bands but this part is completely optional.

Step Three:

Next, add water to your Tulip dye bottles (which conveniently come with the dye powder already pre-measured inside the bottle) and shake until the powered dye is completely mixed, then simply add the colors to the fabric in an alternating spiral pattern. Go crazy. Alternate your colors, have fun--it doesn't have to be perfect. 

Step Four:

 Once you've thoroughly added the colors to the tank in the desired places, wrap it in plastic like a ninja and let the tank sit and absorb the dyes for at least 6 hours or overnight. This ensures that your fabric will retain as much dye as possible.

Step Five: 

When the resting time has finished, follow washing instructions as directed on Tulip dye box, dry and...VOILA!!